30 years since my first home video recording! July 27, 2024

Thursday marked 30 years since my father Bill replaced his Hitachi VHS camcorder for a JVC VHS-C camcorder. The date was Monday, July 25, 1994.

To quote the 25th anniversary post:

The Hitachi had been used for much of the previous nine years to record me and my sister Lauren. Unfortunately, I didn’t like seeing myself on video. I still can’t bear to watch those early recordings. I wasn’t in control and appeared awkward. On two occasions, Dad convinced me that he wasn’t really recording me. The first time, he said the tape was a soap opera; the second time, he said it was a special camera that didn’t tape Michael (as I was known at the time) Chimeri. Of course, he really was recording me.

With this new JVC “Palmcorder,” I was in control. I went into greater detail about that first evening of recording – and the days and years to follow – on the 20th anniversary, …

For the 30th anniversary, I AI upscaled and deinterlaced the first 50 seconds of video recorded on that Monday night in 1994.

As with the 20th and 25th anniversaries, I retraced my steps. I even used the timestamp feature of my 4K, 60 frames per second Panasonic HC-X1500 – a 24-hour clock, not the 12-hour AM/PM clock. I also blurred out the license plates in Adobe Premiere Pro. Enjoy.

I sold the JVC Everio and Panasonic HC-V770 camcorders on eBay in 2022 after getting the HC-X1500, but I still have the Takstar SGC-598 shotgun mic. I’ve noted in prior posts that the HC-X1500 includes a VW-HU1 handle attachment and Rode VideoMic GO II shotgun mic. Earlier this month, I bought a second HC-X1500 for use in my event videography. Of course, that was after buying a 4K30 camcorder last month – the Canon VIXIA HF G70 – and selling it when I was dissatisfied with test video I shot.

I posted my G70 test videos to YouTube, as well, for anyone interested in buying.

I guess I’ll retrace my steps again at the 35-year mark in 2029.